Antlers must be allowed to dry for 60 days before they can be measured to derive an official score.

Early speculation from folks who have seen the rack, or who have guessed its score from photos, indicate the rack could net more than 190 inches.

…

Lenzi shot his buck with a crossbow, so it will be entered in the Game Commission’s archery category.

The current state record, typical archery buck scores 178 2/8. It was shot in Allegheny County in 2004 by Michael Nicola.

…Here’s an interesting twist to the Lenzi buck.

Let’s say it becomes the new state record, typical archery buck.

It will not be recognized by the Pope & Young Club.

That’s the organization that maintains record books for every big game species taken in North America by bowhunters.

And to Pope & Young, crossbows do not meet the definition of a “bow.”

Only kills taken by bows that are hand-held and hand-drawn in the presence of game — recurves, longbows and compounds — are recognized by the Pope & Young Club.

Here’s what the club says about crossbows on its website.

“The Pope and Young Club does not consider the crossbow to be a hunting bow and will not accept any trophies collected by crossbow hunters,” the site states.

“Further, the Pope and Young Club considers the use of crossbows during bowhunting seasons to be a serious threat to the future of bowhunting.”

So beyond Pennsylvania’s borders, Lenzi’s buck could only be recognized by the Boone & Crockett Club and/or Safari Club International, which maintain record books for North American big game taken by any legal weapon.

Crossbows are legal during any archery season in Pennsylvania — a rule that still is a sore spot in many bowhunting circles.

Jeff Lenzi holds the rack of the giant whitetail he shot in Allegheny County in October.

So never fear, traditional bow hunters. PA may unfairly recognize the crossbow kills in the same category as other archery trophies, but the rest of the hunting world will not.